UNIVERSITY  of  DE'HyER 
BULLETIN       *%^ 

Published  Monthly  by  the  UNIVERSITY  of  DENVER,  at  University  Half 
UNIVERSITY  PARK,  DENVER,  in  the  State  of  COLORADO 

Entered  as  second-class  matter  at  the  Post  Office  at  Denver,  Colorado,  under  Act   of  August    24,    1912.     Accept- 
ance for  mailing  at  special  rate  of  postage  provided  for  in  Sec.  1103,  Act  of  Oct.  3,  1917, 
authorized  July  13,  1918. 

Vol.  23  December  1922  No.  9 


REPORT  ON  THE  WORK  OF  THE  1922  SEASON  IN  THE  PIEDRA  PARADA 
ARCHAEOLOGICAL  FIELD. 

By  FRANK  H.  H.  ROBERTS,  JR. 

In  the  summer  of  1921  the  University  of  Denver  and  the  State  Historical 
and  Natural  History  Society  of  Colorado  jointly  sent  an  expedition  into  the 
Piedra  Parada  archaeological  field  near  Pagosa  Springs,  Colorado.  The  results 
of  the  first  season's  work  have  been  published  in  two  bulletins,  the  Bulletin  of 
the  University  of  Denver  for  November,  1921,  and  a  pamphlet,  "Archaeological 
Research  in  the  Northeastern  San  Juan  Basin  of  Colorado  During  the  Summer 
of  1921,"  published  jointly  by  The  State  Historical  and  Natural  History  Society 
of  Colorado  and  the  University  of  Denver.  The  success  of  the  expedition  in  1921 
warranted  the  sending  of  a  second  expedition  in  the  summer  of  1922,  to  con- 
tinue the  work  begun  in  the  previous  year.  The  funds  for.  this  second  under- 
taking were  provided  by  the  University  of  Denver  and  its  friends  and  by  friends 
of  the  Historical  Society. 

The  personnel  of  the  second  expedition  consisted  of  J.  A.  Jeancon,  Curator 
of  Archaeology  and  Ethnology  at  the  State  Museum,  director;  Frank  H.  H. 
Roberts,  Jr.,  Instructor  in  the  University  of  Denver,  assistant  director;  W.  P.  D. 
Clark,  Knute  W.  Kirkgaard,  Arthur  W.  Hiner,  Warren  S.  Strickland,  Owen  P. 
Cutler,  Loren  J.  Wagstaff,  students  of  the  University;  Henry  B.  Roberts,  and 
Joseph  Galloway,  cook.  The  expedition  left  Denver  on  June  12th  for  Pagosa 
Springs.  Camp  was  made  twenty-two  miles  west  of  Pagosa  Springs  on  the  same 
site  used  in  1921,  and  the  season's  work  was  started. 

The  ruins  comprising  the  Piedra  Parada  field  are  situated  along  the  Piedra 
River  twenty-two  miles  west  of  Pagosa  Springs.  The  mounds  indicating  these 
ruins  begin  a  short  distance  south  of  the  point  where  the  Pagosa-Durango  high- 
way crosses  the  Piedra,  and  extend  down  the  river  for  a  distance  of  about  eigh- 
teen miles.  Along  the  lower  benches  of  the  mountains  bordering  the  Piedra 
valley  and  just  above  the  river  are  vast  numbers  of  the  early  type  of  prehistoric 
habitation  known  as  the  pit-house.  In  traveling  eastward  from  the  river  one 
comes  upon  a  higher  type  of  house  on  each  succeeding  bench  until,  when  the 
tops  of  the  small  plateaus  and  mesas  are  reached,  the  true  type  of  pueblo  or 
ccmrn unity  house  is  found. 

The  entire  region  in  which  these  remnants  of  a  Pre-Columbian  civilization 
are  found  is  notable  for  its  rugged  beauty.  It  lies  in  the  upper  San  Juan  water- 
shed, and  the  many  mountain  ridges  have  been  cut  by  streams  flowing  from  the 
continental  divide.  The  country  is  composed  of  many  small  and  comparatively 
deep  canyons,  plateaus,  and  small  mesas,  and,  finally,  the  relatively  broad,  rich 
valley  of  the  Piedra  River  itself.  The  fertile  soil  of  the  valleys,  the  wooded 
slopes  of  the  hills,  the  practically  never-failing  water  supply  of  the  Piedra  and 
the  natural  defenses  offered  by  the  mesas  could  not  but  attract  a  primitive  peo- 
ple and,  judging  by  the  mute  reminders  of  their  bygone  civilization,  held  them 
for  many  generations,  perhaps  even  for  centuries,  in  that  vicinity. 


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SKetch  A&p  of 
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The  excavations  of  the  two  seasons  were  made  in  the  immediate  vicinity 
of  what  is  known  as  the  Piedra  Parada  or  the  Chimney  Rock.  The  Piedra 
Parada  rises  to  an  elevation  of  more  than  1,2  00  feet  above  the  floor  of  the 
valley.  Several  hundred  feet  west  of  this  formation  is  another  of  the  same 
type  but  bearing  no  name.  There  is  a  considerable  break  between  the  latter 
and  the  end  of  the  Piedra  Parada  mesa.  From  the  point  where  the  mesa  itself 
ends,  the  entire  formation  slopes  away  in  a  generally  southwestern  direction 
until,  by  a  series  of  benches,  it  finally  reaches  the  river  two  miles  to  the  west. 
The  highest  point  of  the  Piedra  Parada  mesa  has  an  altitude  of  7,735  feet  and 
is  triangular  in  shape.     On  it  is  located  the  large  pueblo  which  occupied,  to  a 


great  extent,  the  attention  of  the  two  expeditions,  and  also  the  ruin  called  the 
Guard  House  which  was  excavated  during  the  season  of  1921.  From  the  west 
end  of  the  Guard  House  one  drops  down  to  the  lower  mesa  by  a  neck  of  land 
only  a  few  feet  in  width.  On  the  lower  mesa  are  109  mounds,  indicating  buried 
homes  of  the  ancient  inhabitants.  The  lower  mesa  has  an  altitude  of  7,5  00 
feet  but  slopes  away  rather  abruptly  towards  the  river. 

The  work  of  the  summer  of  1922  was  devoted  to  four  sites,  three  of  the 
pit-house  type  and  the  large  pueblo  on  the  top  of  the  Piedra  Parada  mesa. 
In  addition  to  this  Mr.  Jeancon  and  Mr.  Wagstaff  made  several  reconnaissance 
trips  to  various  parts  of  the  surrounding  territory  for  the  purpose  of  locating 
ruins  and  making,  as  far  as  possible  without  excavation,  a  tentative  comparison 
of  their  relation  to  those  of  the  group  on  which  excavation  was  being  conducted. 
The  results  of  these  trips  will  be  included  in  the  report  of  the  entire  summer's 
work  which  is  to  be  issued  at  a  later  date. 

In  addition  to  the  work  of  excavation  the  members  of  the  expedition  had 
the  pleasure  of  visiting  other  ruins  located  in  the  southwest.  One  group  went 
to  Aztec  and  the  Chaco  Canyon  in  New  Mexico,  returning  by  way  of  the  Mesa 
Verde.  They  secured  considerable  information  of  great  value  in  the  compara- 
tive study  of  the  Piedra  ruins.  The  second  group,  which  was  accompanied  by 
Dr.  E.  B.  Renaud  of  the  Department  of  Archaeology  and  Anthropology,  Uni- 
versity of  Denver,  visited  Aztec,  Mr.  Earl  Morris'  camp  in  the  Red  Horse  Gulch 
country,  the  Mesa  Verde,  Yucca  House  National  Monument  and  the  tower  ruins 
in  the  McElmo  Canyon.  This  gave  the  students  an  opportunity  to  see  many  of 
the  large  and  well  known  fields  in  other  areas  of  the  southwest. 

Mr.  Owen  P.  Cutler  devoted  the  summer  to  a  study  of  the  geology,  flora, 
and  fauna  of  the  Piedra  Parada  region.  He  was  joined  by  his  father,  Dr.  I.  E. 
Cutler,  Professor  of  Biology,  University  of  Denver,  in  August  and  the  two  com- 
pleted the  work.  The  results  of  this  work  will  be  included  in  the  main  report 
for  the  season. 

In  dealing  with  the  work  of  the  season  of  1922  the  various  sites  studied 
will  be  taken  up  in  the  probable  order  of  their  antiquity. 

PARGIN   RANCH  PIT-HOUSES. 

On  the  first  bench  above  the  river  to  the  east  of  the  Pagosa-Durango  high- 
way, a  short  distance  north  of  the  schoolhouse  which  is  located  several  hundred 
feet  from  the  point  where  the  road  turns  north  toward  the  Piedra  post-office, 
are  many  groups  of  mounds  covering  the  disintegrated  remains  of  the  earliest 
types  of  pit-houses  to  be  found  in  this  region.  (Sketch  Map,  No.  3.)  These 
mounds  are  on  land  belonging  to  Mr.  Doll  Pargin,  and  it  was  through  the  kind- 
ness of  the  owner  that  the  members  of  the  expedition  were  permitted  to  work 
at  this  site.  Excavations  were  made  in  several  of  these  mounds,  but  it  was 
impossible  to  determine  the  size,  shape,  or  quality  of  the  houses  originally 
located  there  because  of  the  extent  to  which  they  had  been  subjected  to  weather- 
ing influences.  In  two  instances  two  opposite  walls  of  rooms  were  uncovered 
but  the  remaining  portions  could  not  be  located  on  account  of  the  advanced 
stage  of  decay  of  the  structures. 

One  of  the  mounds  opened  in  this  group  proved  rich  in  artifacts  but  fur- 
nished practically  no  answer  to  the  question  regarding  the  type  of  house.  A 
large  thin  sandstone  slab  was  uncovered,  and  when  it  was  removed  a  large 
shattered  olla  or  storage  jar,  was  found  beneath  it.  This  jar  was  of  the  plain, 
undecorated  type  of  pottery  and  by  its  side  was  a  much  smaller  one  of  the 
same  type.  The  olla  contained  a  number  of  animal  bones  and  possibly  a  few 
human  bones,  although  certain  identification  of  the  latter  has  not  been  made, 
due  to  their  poor  state  of  preservation.  In  addition  to  these  bones  the  olla 
contained  a  coiled  ware  pitcher  with  a  broken  handle;  a  natural  formation 
bird  fetish;  paint  grinding  stone;  four  spirifera  shells;  three  quartz  crystals; 
a  selenite  crystal;  a  fossil  amenite  impression;  a  natural  concretion  probably 
used  as  a  fetish.  In  the  small  pitcher,  taken  from  the  olla,  was  a  pendant  of 
black  stone,  similar  to  jet,  with  two  holes  drilled  at  one  end  for  the  purpose 
of  suspension. 

The  small  bowl,  which  was  lying  next  to  the  olla,  contained  what  was  ap- 
parently a  medicine  man's  outfit  comprising  a  medicine  stone,  two  spear  points, 


Ground  Pfan 
Large  Tuchh 

uhdlci.  Tort  ion 
I/nexcdvdtci 


Plate  3.      Ground  Plan  of  Large  Pueblo  on  Piedra  Parada  Mesa.     Shaded  Por- 
tion Unexcavated. 


a  large  crinoid,   small   quartz   crystals,   a  fossil   clam  shell  cast,   two   spirifera 
shells,  a  flaking  tool,  and  a  petrified  crinoid. 

Later  excavation  at  this  point  uncovered  the  pieces  of  a  large  plain  ware 
bowl  with  handles,  a  small  mug  or  tumbler-shaped  vessel  of  very  crude  type, 
a  pipe  or  cloud  blower,  a  small  heart-shaped  bowl  and  a  small  gourd-shaped 
vessel.  All  of  these  were  of  the  undecorated  ware.  Sherds  of  several  coiled 
vessels  were  also  secured  at  this  site. 

.  Work  on  a  mound  30  feet  north  of  the  above  location  failed  to  disclose 
anything  beyond  two  walls  running  parallel  in  a  general  east  and  west  direc- 
tion. They  were  of  the  cobblestone  type  of  what  has  been  called  the  second 
stage  in  the  pit-house  chronology.  A  few  sherds  of  plain  and  coiled  ware  ves- 
sels comprised  all  of  the  artifacts  found  at  this  location. 

At  a  distance  of  a  hundred  feet  north  of  this  second  mound  a  third  one 
was  opened.  Large  quantities  of  burned  roofing  material,  a  few  sherds,  a  small 
section  of  wall  and  the  indications  that  the  floor  had  been  paved  with  sand- 
stone slabs  constituted  the  returns  from  this  site. 


mof^CB 


In      .&*h 


Plate  2.      Ground  Plans  of  Ruins  Piedra  No.  1  and  Piedra  No.  2.    Upper,  Pieclra 
No.  1;  Lower,  Piedra  No.  2. 


PIEDRA  NO.  1. 

This  ruin  is  located  at  a  distance  of  about  two  miles  south  of  the  No.  3 
group  just  described,  and  is  on  a  similar  bench  to  the  east  of  the  river.  Piedra 
No.  1  is  one  of  a  group  of  mounds  lying  on  a  spur  jutting  out  from  the  general 
elevation  which  terminates  in  the  Piedra  Parada  mesa.  The  weathering  caused 
by  the  washing  of  surface  water  across  this  site  made  it  impossible  to  determine 
the  appearance  and  extent  of  the  original  build'ng.  The  north  wall  was  entirely 
gone  and  portions  of  other  walls  had  also  disappeared.     (Plate  2,  Upper.) 

The  walls  average  between  6  and  7  inches  in  thickness,  are  of  the  slab 
type  of  construction  made  of  sandstone  laid,  in  some  cases,  on  a  cobblestone 
foundation  and,  at  other  points,  an  adobe  base.  At  the  highest  portion  now 
standing  they  rise  only  18  inches  above  the  surface  of  the  ground. 

Eight  feet  east  of  this  group  of  three  rooms  is  a  small  inclosure  with  walls 
of  but  one  course  in  height,  there  being  no  indications  that  they  had  originally 
been  higher.  The  east  wall  and  a  portion  of  the  west  were  missing.  The  floor 
was  paved  with  thin  sandstone  slabs.  At  the  present  time  there  is  no  solution 
as  to  the  probable  nature  of  this  room,  if  it  may  be  called  such. 

The  debris  which  filled  the  rooms  of  this  group  consisted  of  burned  roof 
material,  not  sufficient  to  give  an  idea  of  the  type  of  construction,  stones  from 
the  walls,  drift  sand,  adobe  from  the  plaster  and  the  roof,  and  a  thin  layer  of 
ashes  and  charcoal  directly  on  the  floor. 

Artifacts  found  in  this  ruin  consist  of:  Coiled  ware  vessel  of  the  elongated 
flower-pot  shape;  plam  ware  bowl,  shattered;  a  scoop  made  from  a  piece  of 
black-on-white  ware;  petrified  wood  fetish;  loving  cup,  of  the  two-necked  va- 
riety seen  along  the  Rio  Grande,  shattered;  an  excellent  stone  door;  several 
manos;  pecking  stones;  a  large  stone  maul  and  a  large  sandstone  spear  point. 
Several  feet  outside  of  the  south  wall  a  small  ladle  was  found.  This  is  of  the 
type  called  ceremonial  by  some  investigators,  and  children's  toys  by  others. 

West  and  south  of  this  ruin  is  a  group  of  mounds  which  indicate  other 
dwellings.  In  the  south  portion  of  the  group  is  a  circular  depression  which, 
suggests  the  existence  of  a  kiva  or  circular  ceremonial  room.  If  this  is  a  kiva, 
the  entire  configuration  of  the  mound  would  lead  to  the  belief  that  this  is  a 
variation  of  the  type  of  Unit-House  excavated  by  Dr.  T.  Mitchell  Prudden  in  the 
Montezuma  valley  south  of  Cortez,  Colorado.  The  only  answer  to  this  theory, 
however,  lies  beneath  the  mound  and  the  clearing  of  the  debris  from  the  ruin 
would  be  necessary  before  a  definite  conclusion  could  be  reached. 

PIEDRA  NO.  2. 

This  building  is  located  on  a  spur  of  the  bench  to  the  east  of  the  Piedra 
about  100  yards  north  of  Piedra  No.  1.  The  tongue  of  land  on  which  Piedra 
No.  1  is  situated,  is  separated  from  that  of  Piedra  No.  2  by  a  deep  draw  which 
has  been  cut  by  the  rushing  waters  from  the  melting  snows  on  the  mesa  above 
and  from  the  heavy  rains  of  countless  summers.  This  structure  is  very  similar 
to  that  of  Piedra  No.  1,  although  in  a  better  state  of  preservation  than  its 
neighbor.  (Plate  2,  Lower.)  It  is  of  the  advanced  type  of  pit-house  or  what 
might  perhaps  better  be  called  a  unit-type  of  house,  as  it  appears  to  have 
stood  originally  entirely  above  ground.  It  was  apparently  a  four-room  dwelling 
although  the  east  wall  and  portions  of  the  north  and  south  walls  of  Room  D 
have  disappeared.  Because  of  this  it  was  impossible  to  tell  the'  former  extent 
of  the  compartment  and  whether  or  not  there  were  additional  rooms.  It  is 
not  likely,  however,  that  there  were  more  inclosures  to  the  east  as  the  debris 
was  not  such  as  to  indicate  their  existence. 

The  rooms  in  Piedra  No.  2  vary  in  size.  The  walls  are  of  the  horizontal 
slab  with  cobblestone  base  construction  and  average  from  10  to  12  inches  in 
thickness.  An  exception  will  be  noted  between  Rooms  A  and  B  where  the  wall 
is  unusually  thick,  measuring  3  feet  6  inches  across.  The  thickness  of  this  wall 
and  the  size  of  Room  B  are  the  only  features  which  stand  out  as  distinct  in  the 
architecture  of  this  building.  Room  A  was  partially  paved  with  thin  slabs, 
while  Room  B  was  entirely  paved.  There  were  traces  of  paving  in  Room  C, 
while  Room  D  was  so  badly  weathered  that  it  would  not.  be  safe  to  conclude 
whether  it  was  paved  or  not.  However,  no  portions  of  paving  slabs  were  found 
in  the  clearing  of  this  room. 

The  paving  of  portions,  and  in  some  cases  the  entire  surface,  of  the  floor 
as  noted  in  the   various   dwellings  here   discussed   is  not  unusual,   for  similar 


characteristics  have  been  found  in  the  Megalithic  House  excavated  by  Dr.  J.  W. 
Pewkes  at  Mesa  Verde  and  in  the  slab  or  pit-houses  uncovered  by  Mr.  Earl 
Morris  in  the  Johnson  Canyon  region.  This  same  feature  has  been  noted  also  in- 
other  areas  where  examples  of  the  earlier  stages  of  building  development  are 
found. 

From  the  standpoint  of  specimens  uncovered  during  the  summer,  Room  A 
ranks  as  the  greatest  find.  It  contained  three  burials  accompanied  by  the  cus- 
tomary mortuary  offerings.  The  first  skeleton  removed  was  in  a  good  state  of 
preservation.  The  body  had  been  buried  in  the  natal  or  sitting  position  in  the 
northeast  corner  of  the  room,  its  back  against  the  north  wall.  The  skull  had 
fallen  backward  into  a  bowl  that  had  been  placed  behind  the  person,  presum- 
ably at  the  time  of  burial.  This  was  in  all  probability  responsible  for  the  shat- 
tered condition  of  the  bowl,  which  was  of  the  black-on-white  variety.  Five 
pipes  of  rather  unusual  form  resembling  the  modern  clay  pipe,  only  much 
larger  (one  of  them  having  two  bowls  placed  side  by  side  on  the  stem),  were 
found  between  the  knees  of  the  skeleton.  To  the  right  were  two  bowls,  shat- 
tered, of  the  black-on-white  ware.  Further  to  the  right  and  against  the  north 
wall  stood  a  large  coiled  ware  vessel  containing  finely  powdered  quartz  which, 
as  Mr.  Jeancon  suggested,  was  probably  intended  for  tempering  the  clay  from 
which  the  pottery  was  made.  Several  inches  in  front  of  this  piece  of  pottery 
was  a  small  plain  ware  pitcher  of  good  shape  and  workmanship  and  another  of 
the  black-on-white  bowls.  All  of  these  pieces,  with  the  exception  of  the  pitcher, 
had  been  broken  at  the  time  the  roof  fell  in. 

At  a  short  distance  in  front  of  the  skeleton  and  about  two  feet  from  the 
east  wall  was  a  black-on-white  ware  figurine  which  clearly  shows  that  it  was 
modeled  after  a  mountain  sheep.  The  workmanship  on  this  object  was  ex- 
tremely fine,  and  the  likeness  so  striking  that  it  was  recognized  immediately. 
It  was  unquestionably  an  object  of  ceremonial  usage.  The  sheep  measures 
8V2  inches  from  the  top  of  its  head  to  the  bottom  of  its  front  feet  and  the  body 
is.  6 Mi  inches  long.  In  the  southeast  corner  was  another  large  coiled  vessel, 
badly  shattered,  containing  pieces  of  quartz  which  were  evidently  to  be  used 
for  powdering  as  a  stone  mortar  was  lying  beside  the  pot. 

The  other  skeletons  had  been  disturbed  by  badgers.  These  animals  had 
driven  a  burrow  through  the  room,  and  scattered  the  bones  more  or  less.  It 
appeared,  however,  that  one  person  had  been  buried  lying  in  the  flexed  position 
across  the  center  of  the  room,  with  the  head  to  the  east,  while  the  other  had 
been  buried  with  his  back  against  the  west  wall.  The  bones  of  both  these  skele- 
tons were  in  a  poor  state  of  preservation.  The  skull  of  one  had  been  crushed 
by  a  falling  stone,  and  the  skull  of  the  other  soon  went  to  pieces  upon  being 
exposed  to  the  air.  All  of  the  skulls  were  of  the  typical  deformed  type,  having 
been  flattened  artificially  at  the  back. 

That  Room  B  evidently  had  contained  a  burial  is  suggested  by  a  portion 
of  a  skull  and  several  pieces  of  bones  found  in  the  west  end.  Disintegration 
was  so  complete  that  it  was  impossible  to  remove  the  fragments  intact.  Room 
B  also  contained  two  of  the  large  coiled  ware  vessels,  both  of  which  had  been 
shattered  by  falling  stones  from  the  walls. 

Rooms  C  and  D  yielded  only  a  few  sherds  of  the  plain  and  coiled  varieties. 
A  piece  of  a  small  bowl,  sufficient  for  reconstruction,  was  found  some  distance 
beyond  Room  D  while  efforts  were  being  made  to  find  the  east  end  of  the  build- 
ing. 

The  debris  which  filled  the  interior  of  the  rooms  was  composed  of  stones 
from  the  walls,  a  great  amount  of  adobe  from  the  roof  and  wall  plastering, 
some  drift  sand  and,  near  the  floor,  a  thin  layer  of  house  dirt.  Since  there  were 
no  signs  to  indicate  that  the  roof  had  burned,  it  is  logical  to  conclude  that  this 
portion  of  the  building  remained  intact  until  the  supporting  beams  rotted  away, 
allowing  the  covering  to  collapse. 

In  the  effort  to  determine  the  extent  of  the  building,  trenches  were  dug 
on  the  outside  to  see  if  there  were  other  inclosures.  But  the  excavations  failed 
to  uncover  additional  walls;  hence  it  is  safe  to  assume  that  the  ground  plan 
in  this  report  is  correct. 

Southwest  of  Piedra  No.  2,  at  a  distance  of  from  25  to  30  feet,  is  another 
mound  which,  judging  from  surface  indications,  covers  a  group  of  rooms  ad- 
jacent to  a  kiva.  This  mound  resembles  to  a  marked  degree  the  one  mentioned 
in  connection  with  Piedra  No.  1.  The  time  at  the  disposal  of  the  expedition  did 
not  warrant  the  attempt  to  excavate  this  unit. 


WORK  ON  THE  LARGE  PUEBLO. 

After  the  excavation  of  Piedra  No.  2  was  completed,  work  was  resumed  on 
the  large  pueblo  or  community  house  on  the  top  of  the  Piedra  Parada  or 
Chimney  Rock  mesa.  During  the  season  of  1921  a  large  kiva,  the  East  Kiva, 
and  five  rectangular  rooms,  as  well  as  a  portion  of  six  small  rooms  along  the 
south  and  east  sides  of  the  rectangular  inclosure  surrounding  the  kiva  were 
excavated,  (Plate  3).  After  surveying  the  ruin,  we  decided  to  devote  the  re- 
mainder of  the  1922  season  to  clearing  the  unit  west  of  the  East  Kiva.  Be- 
tween the  East  and  West  Kivas  is  a  row  of  five  rooms;  these  and  the  West 
Kiva  with  its  adjoining  compartments  comprise  the  unit  excavated  during  the 
summer  of  1922.  Previous  to  excavation  it  appeared  as  though  there  were  but 
four  rooms  between  the  two  kivas  and  on  the  ground  plan  contained  in  the 
report  "Archaeological  Research  In  the  Northeastern  San  Juan  Basin  of  Colo- 
rado During  the  Summer  of  1921,"  but  four  are  indicated.  These  are  numbers 
31,  32,  33  and  34  respectively.  The  work  of  last  summer  showed,  however, 
that  there  are  five,  and  they  will  be  designated  temporarily  in  this  report  as 
31,  32,  33,  34  and  35. 


View  of  the  Unit  Excavated  in  the  Large  Pueblo.     Rooms  34,  33,  32  and  31  in 
the  Foreground.    The  West  Kiva  and  Its  Two  Compartments  in  the  Left  Center. 


All  of  these  rooms  approximate  the  rectangular  type,  although  it  will  be 
seen  from  a  glance  at  the  accompanying  ground  plan,  (Plate  3),  that  they  are 
slightly  irregular  in  form,  the  width  at  the  southwest  end,  in  some  cases, 
being  narrower  than  that  at  the  northeast.  The  walls  of  this  portion  will  av- 
erage 2  feet  6  inches  in  thickness.  They  are  constructed  of  dressed  slabs  of 
sandstone  of  the  type  of  which  the  cap-rock  of  the  mesa  is  formed.  They  are 
well  laid  up  and  show  a  rather  highly  developed  sense  of  masonry  although 
there  are  no  broken  joints,  except  where  these  are  accidental,  and  no  tied-in 
corners.  In  this  section  of  the  building  the  type  of  wall  seen  at  Aztec  and  the 
Chaco  Canyon  is  particularly  noticeable.  That  is,  the  courses  formed  of  the 
large  slabs  are  separated  by  several  courses  of  very  thin,  small  pieces  of  stone. 
This  type  of  construction  was  also  found  in  the  walls  of  Room  A  in  Piedra  No. 
2.  The  weathering  on  the  walls  shows  that  for  a  long  period  after  the  roof 
and  ceilings  fell,  the  building  stood  exposed  to  the  elements,  the  protecting 
fill  of  windblown  sand  and  the  rock  from  the  upper  courses  of  the  walls  having 
filled  in  the  rooms  only  after  they  had  stood  open  for  a  great  many  years. 
The  greatest  erosion  is  noted  on  the  north  and  east  walls  showing  that  the 
prevailing  winds  must  have  come  from  the  south. 

Indications  point  to  the  fact  that  this  must  have  been  the  older  section  of 
the  building  since  the  walls  are  not  in  as  good  condition  as  those  of  the  unit  ex- 
cavated in  1921.  The  masonry  is  also  of  a  poorer  quality  of  workmanship. 
These  factors  alone  would  not  justify  such  a  conclusion,  but  the  finding  of 
rather  large  amounts  of  rubbish,  house  sweepings,  bones  of  several  kinds  of 
animals,  a  considerable  amount  of  broken  pottery,  etc.,  suggests  the  aban- 
donment of  these  rooms  and  their  subsequent  use  as  dumping  places  for  refuse, 
— -features  which  would  support  the  theory  just  advanced. 


These  rooms  were  filled,  in  addition  to  the  refuse  and  house  dirt  found 
lying  on  the  floors,  with  burned  roofing  material,  plaster  from  the  walls,  adobe 
from  the  ceilings  and  roof,  a  large  amount  of  stone  from  the  walls  and  wind- 
blown sand.  The  burned  roofing  material  was  in  a  position  which  clearly  indi- 
cated that  the  structure  was  two  stories  high  at  this  point  and  that  the  ceilings 
were  of  the  Aztec  and  Chaco  type,  heavy  beams  across  the  narrow  portion  of  the 
rooms  and  small  poles  running  lengthwise. 

Room  32  contained  a  doorway  of  the  inverted  keystone  shape  in  the  west 
wall.  This  was  the  only  door  in  the  series  of  rooms  and  had  connected  Room 
32  with  the  small  compartment  formed  by  the  straight  wall  Of  the  rectangle  sur- 
rounding the  West  Kiva  and  the  curved  wall  of  the  kiva.  The  sill  is  2  feet 
7  inches  from  the  floor.  The  door  is  placed  2  feet  6  inches  from  the  north 
wall,  at  the  bottom,  and  2  feet  9  inches  from  the  same  wall  at  the  top.  The  sill 
is  1  foot  11  inches  from  the  south  wall  and  the  top  2  feet  1  inch.  The  door 
measures  1  foot  5  inches  wide  at  the  sill,  ll1^  inches  at  the  lintel  and  is  2  feet 
11  inches  high.    It  was  filled  with  fallen  stones  from  the  wall  above. 

Room  35  yielded  a  large  number  of  sherds  of  the  black-on-white,  red, 
plain  and  coiled  varieties  of  pottery.  Enough  pieces  were  obtained  to  make 
possible  reconstruction  of  several  bowls  and  globular  shaped  vessels.  In  addi- 
tion to  this,  several  pieces  of  turquoise  originally  used  for  inlay  work,  a  burned 
pendant,  bone  awls,  and  scraping  tools  were  secured. 

Room  34  did  not  furnish  much  in  the  way  of  artifacts,  the  only  specimens 
being  a  bone  bead,  a  long  blade-like  instrument  probably  used  in  the  tanning 
of  hides,  and  a  piece  of  a  black-on-white  ware  bowl,  the  remainder  of  which 
had  been  found  in  Room  35.  Room  33  yielded  a  few  sherds  from  a  piece  of 
coiled  pottery  and  a  few  black-on-white  pieces,  one  bone  awl,  one  large  bone 
bead  and  a  piece  of  bone  which  had  been  highly  polished,  the  use  of  which  is 
unknown.    Rooms  32  and  31  contained  but  a  small  number  of  sherds. 

The  average  depth  from  the  top  of  the  standing  wall  to  the  floor  is  11 
feet  at  the  east  ends  of  the  various  rooms  and  varies  from  5  feet  at  the  west  end 
of  Room  35  to  8  feet  at  the  west  end  of  Room  31.  The  walls  running  north 
and  south  or  the  east  and  west  walls  of  these  rooms  were  built  at  one  time, 
while  the  walls  running  east  and  west  were  filled  in  after  the  former  had  been 
built. 

A  rather  interesting  feature  of  this  unit,  and  one  similar  to  what  the  1921 
excavations  disclosed,  is  that  of  the  compartments  formed  by  the  rectangular 
inclosure  surrounding  the  West  Kiva.  Two  rooms  of  this  type  were  uncovered 
just  west  of  the  group  of  five  described  above.  The  south  compartment  was  the 
first  excavated,  and  it  furnished  a  large  amount  of  broken  pottery,  many  pieces 
of  which  it  is  possible  to  restore,  arrowheads,  bone  instruments,  and  two  pieces 
of  turquoise,  one  a  portion  of  a  pendant,  the  other  from  an  inlay.  The  debris 
was  similar  to  that  removed  from  the  other  rooms  but  gave  more  evidence  of 
the  place  having  been  used  as  a  dump.  It  is  a  large  inclosure  as  the  diagram 
shows.  The  wall  between  the  north  and  south  compartments  was  not  built 
on  the  cap:rock  of  the  mesa,  as  were  the  other  walls,  but  on  top  of  a  dirt  fill 
one  foot  in  depth,  showing  that  it  had  been  placed  there  after  the  original  walls 
were  constructed.  The  east  and  west  walls  had  smooth  facing,  but  the  straight 
wall  on  the  south  and  the  curved  kiva  wall  were  not  trued  at  the  time  of  con- 
struction and  present  a  rough  surface. 

In  the  north  compartment  the  debris  was  similar  to  that  in  the  south. 
The  inclosure  was  much  smaller  than  the  one  just  described.  A  small  wall  con- 
nects the  north  and  kiva  walls  at  the  west.  This  is  similar  to  the  one  between 
the  rooms  under  consideration.  It  was  into  this  room  that  the  doorway  previ- 
ously mentioned  opened.  A  few  pieces  of  bone,  some  potsherds  and  a  stone  axe 
came  from  this  room.  The  axe  is  of  a  rather  unusual  type  for  this  region,  be- 
ing of  the  two-edged  variety  more  commonly  attributed  to  the  plains  Indians. 

The  West  Kiva  proved  to  be  one  of  the  most  interesting  rooms  excavated 
during  the  summer.  In  the  report  of  the  work  for  1921  it  was  referred  to  as 
the  small  kiva  of  the  ruin,  but  upon  excavation  it  was  found  to  be  practically 
as  large  as  the  one  uncovered  the  previous  season.  As  the  erosive  influences 
had  been  stronger  on  the  southwest  side  of  the  community  house,  the  walls  of 
this  kiva  are  in  a  poor  state  of  preservation.  The  outer  wall  had  fallen  away 
on  the  southern  half  to  the  level  of  the  top  of  the  banquette  or  inner  wall,  and 
at  one  place  even  below  the  banquette.    The  construction  of  the  walls  was  simi- 


lar   to   that   previously   mentioned,    although   somewhat   better,    smaller   stones 
were  used. 

Many  of  the  features  common  to  the  Mesa  Verde  type  of  kiva  are  missing. 
The  room  under  consideration  has  no  Sipapu,  ceremonial  opening  to  the  under 
world,  no  pilasters  for  supporting  the  roof  beams  and  apparently  no  deflector. 
There  is  a  wall  which  might  have  served  for  a  deflector  but  it  is  on  the  west 
side  of  the  fireplace,  not  between  it  and  the  ventilator  opening  where  it  would 
of  necessity  have  to  be  if  it  served  the  purpose  of  a  deflector.  The  solution 
which  first  presented  itself  with  respect  to  this  problem  was  that  the  length 
of  wall  to  the  west  was  simply  one  portion  of  a  deflector  which  had  entirely 


The  West  Kiva  with  Its  Two  Compartments  in  the  Foreground. 


surrounded  the  firepit  on  three  sides.  The  fact  that  no  signs  of  wall  construc- 
tion were  found  on  the  other  two  sides  precludes  such  a  possibility.  A  few 
indications  on  the  north  side  of  the  fireplace  suggested  the  belief  that  there 
had  been  a  wall  at  that  point,  but  the  relation  of  such  a  wall  to  the  wall  on  the 
west  could  not  be  established.  It  is  more  probable  that  the  stones  had  fallen, 
in  the  position  in  which  they  were  found,  at  the  time  of  the  burning  of  the  roof. 
If,  however,  this  portion  of  wall  had  originally  joined  that  on  the  west,  it  is 
impossible  to  explain  the  arrangement  of  a  firepit  inclosed  on  two  sides,  espe- 
cially as  those  two  were  on  the  north  and  west,  while  the  ventilator  opening 
was  on  the  southeast. 

The  fireplace  had  been  built  up  from  the  floor  and  stands  at  a  height  of 

1  foot  10  inches  above  that  level.    The  pit  is  circular  in  form  measuring  3  feet 

2  inches  in  diameler.  It  was  filled  with  ashes  at  the  time  of  excavation.  A  curious 
fact  in  connection  with  the  fireplace  is  that  the  bottom  of  the  ventilator  opening 
in  the  wall  of  the  kiva  is  the  same  height  above  the  floor,  1  foot  10  inches. 
The  probabilities  are  that  after  the  kiva  was  constructed,  with  the  ventilator 
at  the  mentioned  height  above  the  floor,  it  was  found  necessary  to  raise  the  fire 
level  in  order  to  secure  the  desired  benefits  from  the  ventilator.  Another  theory 
which  suggests  itself  is  that  this  kiva  was  used  in  connection  with  the  cere- 
monial fire,  and  that  the  fireplace  was  elevated,  similar  to  those  in  structures 
in  other  regions  of  the  southwest  which  are  known  to  have  been  used  for  this 
purpose,  with  that  object  in  view. 

The  ventilator  of  the  West  Kiva  is  very  unlike  that  of  the  East  Kiva  in 
so  far  as  it  does  not  have  the  horizontal  shaft  extending  into  the  room.  The 
walls  were  shattered  to  such  an  extent  at  this  point  that  it  is  impossible  to 
state  just  how   the  ventilator  originally   appeared;    but  following   the   general 


type  of  such  openings  we  are  fairly  safe  in  stating  that  the  outer  wall  of  the 
kiva  contained  the  perpendicular  shaft.  Burned  material  found  in  the  horizontal 
shaft,  in  the  walls,  indicated  that  the  opening  had  been  covered  by  wooden 
poles,  plastered  on  top,  in  order  to  make  an  unbroken  surface  of  the  banquette 
top.  A  large  stone  was  found  lying  in  the  opening  of  the  ventilator.  This  just 
fit  the  opening  and  may  have  been  used  in  the  capacity  of  a  movable  deflector, 
to  regulate  the  inrush  of  fresh  air.  The  horizontal  shaft  of  the  ventilator  meas- 
ures 2  feet  4  inches  from  the  bottom  of  the  shaft  to  the  top  of  the  banquette. 
It  is  1  foot  11  inches  in  width,  5  feet  5  inches  in  length.  At  the  south  or  more 
correctly,  the  southeast  end,  there  is  the  remnant  of  a  wall  which  originally 
closed  the  opening.  This  bit  of  masonry  is  1  foot  2  inches  in  thickness  and 
stands  to  a  height  of  1  foot. 

Because  of  the  sloping  surface  of  the  mesa  top  the  builders  found  it  neces- 
sary to  level  the  kiva  floor  by  means  of  a  sand  fill.  The  floor  level  was  readily 
discernible  and  at  the  west  side  of  the  kiva  a  foot  of  sand  had  been  filled  in 
to  make  the  surface  conform  to  that  on  the  east  where  the  adobe  flooring  was 
applied  directly  to  the  cap-rock. 

The  remains  of  burned  timbers  found  in  the  debris  in  the  excavation  of  the 
kiva  were  lying  in  such  a  manner  as  to  indicate  beyond  a  doubt  that  the  build- 
ing had  been  covered  with  the  prevailing  type  of  what  is  known  as  the  cribbed 
roof.  The  beams  had  been  laid,  apparently,  on  the  banquette  as  there  were  no 
signs  of  pilasters  of  any  type  whatsoever.  The  beams  averaged  from  6  to  8 
inches  in  diameter,  judging  from  the  charred  remains  which  were  measured 
at  the  time  of  removal.  The  north  side  of  the  roof  was  the  first  to  fall,  the  south 
remaining  intact  for  a  much  longer  period.  This  was  evidenced  by  the  fact  that 
on  the  north  the  burned  remnants  were  lying  on  the  floor  while  on  the  south 
and  southeast  several  feet  of  drift  sand  was  between  the  floor  and  the  beams. 

One  whole  piece  of  pottery  of  the  black-on-white  ware,  which  gave  the  ap- 
pearance of  two  open  bowls  joined  together,  was  found  here.  From  the  many 
black-on-white  sherds  recovered  it  was  possible  to  restore  several  additional 
pieces  of  pottery.  Most  of  one  red  ware  bowl  and  a  great  many  sherds  of  the 
coiled  variety  were  also  secured. 

From  the  top  of  the  banquette,  which  is  2  feet  8  inches  wide,  to  the  floor 
the  measurements  are:  east  side,  4  feet  2  inches;  north,  4  feet  10  inches;  west, 
b  feet;  south,  4  feet  5  inches.  On  the  north  side  of  the  kiva  the  wall  stands  3 
feet  above  the  top  of  the  banquette.  The  same  is  true  on  the  east,  but  on  the 
west  the  height  is  only  1  foot  8  inches.  On  practically  the  entire  southern  arc 
of  the  circle  the  outer  wall  is  level  with  the  top  of  the  banquette. 

Work  was  started  on  the  compartments  west  of  the  kiva,  which  are  simi- 
lar to  those  already  described  on  the  east.  But  the  walls  of  these  were  in  such 
bad  condition  that  it  was  deemed  advisable  to  leave  the  rooms  uncleared  in 
order  to  keep  them  from  collapsing  entirely.  The  north  and  south  walls  of  the 
rectangle  were  traced  to  the  points  where  they  join  the  west.  In  the  north 
wall  another  doorway  was  found.  It  is  of  the  rectangular  type,  2  feet  wide. 
Its  height  could  not  be  determined  as  the  wall  has  fallen  away  until  but  two 
feet  remain  above  the  level  of  the  door-sill.  This  opening  is  2  feet  10  inches 
from  the  juncture  of  the  straight  wall  and  the  kiva  wall.  On  the  north  side 
these  two  walls  fuse  into  one  as  will  be  seen  from  a  glance  at  the  drawing. 

At  the  completion  of  this  work  the  extreme  western  walls  of  the  pueblo 
were  traced  and  the  form  of  the  building  determined.  It  will  be  noted  by  the 
dotted  lines  at  the  southern  corner  that  there  were  no  remaining  walls  at  that 
point,  but  the  quantity  of  debris  was  sufficient  to  show  that  there  had  originally 
been  masonry  completing  the  corner  as  suggested  by  the  ground  plan. 

CONCLUSION. 

From  the  facts  at  hand  at  the  present  time  it  is  reasonably  safe  to  con- 
clude that  the  peoples  who  built  the  structures  found  along  the  Piedra  River 
were  to  a  great  degree  related  to  the  other  San  Juan  groups,  who  left"  as  their 
monuments  the  great  ruins  at  Aztec  and  the  Chaco  Canyon.  The  masonry  as 
well  as  other  similarities  of  architecture  and  of  pottery  point  strongly  to  such 
a  relation.  The  pottery  is  so  similar  to  that  from  the  Chaco  in  both  the  design 
element   and  method   of  construction   as  to   make  it   practically  impossible   to 


tell,  in  many  instances,  from  which  area  the  vessel  came.     The  Piedra  Parada 
ware  appears  to  be  of  an  earlier  development,  however. 

Another  interesting  feature  in  regard  to  the  pottery  is  that  with  each 
higher  type  of  house  studied  the  pottery  shows  a  corresponding  step  forward. 
Very  crude  forms  are  found  in  the  earliest  types  of  the  pit-houses  and  the  high- 
est type  of  design,  both  in  element  and  execution,  found  in  the  entire  region 
came  from  the  large  ruin  on  the  mesa  top.  The  intermediate  houses  show  a 
corresponding  pottery  type. 


y^^^jt^^  ^<-' 


Interior  View  of  the  West  Kiva  Showing  Raised  Fireplace  and  Short  Wall. 


The  work  of  the  1922  season  also  served  to  strengthen  the  tentative  theory 
advanced  by  Mr.  Jeancon  to  the  effect  that  the  area  under  consideration  saw 
the  complete  cultural  development  of  the  inhabitants,  from  their  earliest  stages 
to  the  more  advanced  community-house  culture  with  its  attendant  perfection 
in  ceramics.  Nothing  was  found  to  controvert  the  theory  of  house-type  evolu- 
tion as  advanced  in  the  report  for  1921,  and  in  fact  the  work  of  the  last  season 
would  tend  to  strengthen  this  conclusion. 

The  foregoing  report  is  only  in  the  nature  of  a  preliminary  account  of  the 
season's  work  and  has  for  its  purpose  merely  the  relating  of  what  was  actually 
done  without  making  many  necessary  comparisons  and  without  drawing  de- 
tailed and  extensive  conclusions.  The  regular  report  of  the  activities  of  the 
expedition  will  give  in  detail  what  this  paper  has  sketched  in  a  general  way. 
There  are  a  number  of  points  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  give  conclusions  on 
at  this  time.  Further  study  and  excavation  are  necessary  before  some  of  the 
problems  can  even  be  tentatively  solved. 


